“Scotland may change the laws around game hunting after a US
hunter attracted fierce criticism for posing with a dead wild goat and other
animals killed on Islay in the Inner Hebrides. ‘Beautiful wild goat here on the
Island of Islay in Scotland,’ Larysa Switlyk, a Florida-born hunter who hosts
a show on Canada's Wild TV, wrote on social media, alongside a
photo of her posing with its corpse.
”‘Such a fun hunt! They live on the edge of the cliffs of the
island and know how to hide well. We hunted hard for a big one for 2 days and
finally got on this group. Made a perfect 200 yard shot.’ Switlyk also posted photos
of another goat, a ram, and a red stag killed during the Scotland
hunting trip, sparking outrage from many online and calls to limit trophy
hunting in the Hebrides.
“Judy Murray, mother of the Scottish tennis player Andy, called the hunt ‘disgraceful’ and urged
the government to stop similar events taking place. The backlash gathered steam
on social media Wednesday, soon prompting a reaction from lawmakers.
“Michael Russell, member of the Scottish Parliament for Argyll
and Bute, which includes the island in question, said he would raise the hunt
with the government ‘as a matter of urgency.’ ‘If this is actually happening on
Islay, and laid on by some sort of tour company I would want to see it stopped
immediately,’ Russell said. Scottish First Minister Nicola
Sturgeon said the government
‘will review the current situation and consider whether changes to the law are
required.’
“It was ‘totally understandable why the images from Islay of
dead animals being held up as trophies is so upsetting and offensive to people,’
Sturgeon added.
“The National, a Scottish newspaper, splashed Switlyk across
its front page Thursday,
with the banner headline ‘GOAT HUNT FURY.’
“For her part, the US hunter may be unaware of the snowballing
reaction to her photos. She wrote on Instagram late Wednesday night
UK time that she was ‘headed out on a bush plane for my next hunting adventure
and will be out of service for 2 weeks.’
“‘Hopefully that will give enough time for all the ignorant
people out there sending me death threats to get educated on hunting and
conservation,’ she added. ‘FYI, I was in Scotland over a month ago.’
“While hunting is common in parts of the UK, especially in areas
where deer culls are deemed necessary for land management purposes, there is
less of a culture of posing with supposed trophies after a kill as there is in
the US. Numerous American hunters have sparked outrage worldwide for posting
photos of wild animals killed on controversial hunting trips in
Namibia and other African countries.
“Both sons of US President Donald Trump, Donald Jr. and Eric,
are big-game hunters. Don Jr. has been photographed holding a severed elephant
tail after a hunt in Zimbabwe and has reportedly lobbied to reduce limits
on trophy hunting in the US.
“The prevalence of hunters posting photos of their shoots on
social media has coincided with increased backlash to the practice, and the
perceived gloating over killing wild animals with high-powered rifles.
“While some game companies, particularly in African countries,
justify hunts on the grounds that the large fees for killing animals help fund
other conservation efforts, many experts dispute this.
‘Economically, the actual benefits accrued by local people from the hunts have
been found to be exaggerated or practically non-existent in the case of trophy
hunted animals like polar bears in Canada,’ Jeffrey Flocken, a senior vice
president with the Humane Society, wrote for CNN in
2015.
“‘Hunters are not like natural predators,’ he added. ‘They
target the largest specimens; those with the biggest tusks, manes, antlers or
horns.’
“Heavily armed hunters don't always have the last laugh however.
Earlier this month, a hunter in Alaska was hospitalized after a large black
bear he shot fell on top of him, while a video emerged last week of
a team of hunters in Namibia fleeing from a herd of elephants which
charged them after they shot one of its members.
“The country's Ministry of Environment and Tourism has ordered
an investigation into the latter case, saying that the kill was ‘unethical and
unprofessional,’ and the hunters involved could lose their licenses, according to the Namibia
Broadcasting Corporation.”
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